MONTREAL – In a historic gesture, the Municipality of La Morandière, Quebec, has permanently erected the Ukrainian blue-and-yellow national flag next to the flag of the municipality, the provincial flag of Quebec and the Canadian flag, in front of the La Morandière City Hall in recognition of the direct contribution early 20th century Ukrainian immigrants made to this northern region of Quebec.
Today’s Municipality of La Morandière is the 1983 amalgamation of Lac Castagnier (originally called Sheptytsky Colony) and La Morandière, both located 575 kilometers north of Montreal.
Marcel Kurello, a board member of the Spirit Lake Center who worked with the municipality to recognize the early existence of the Shepytsky Colony and the contributions of Ukrainians, was instrumental in making this happen. He is a descendant of the early pioneers; his grandparents were among the first to arrive, as were the parents of Mr. Kurello’s close friend, a former mayor of Amos, Marcel (Vasyl) Lesyk.
In 1925 Father Josephat Jean began to establish a Ukrainian agricultural colony called the Sheptytsky Colony, named after Metropolitan Andrey Sheptytsky whom he knew, worked with and highly respected. Born in Rimouski, Quebec, Father Jean successfully negotiated a large tract of land from the Quebec government to help settle Ukrainians (often referred to as Ruthenians) in dire need, suffering political repression in western Ukraine and for Ukrainians living in difficult conditions in Bosnia having fled Bolshevik repressions in Ukraine in 1921-1922 after World War I. Father Jean, fluent in Ukrainian, devoted his life to helping Ukrainians.
The Ukrainians that established Quebec’s Sheptytsky Colony cleared the land, founded a vibrant community with a cooperative, Ukrainian school, Ukrainian library, museum and the first Ukrainian Studite Monastery. A few Ukrainians remained until the 1970s, however, the Sheptytsky Colony itself eventually did fail due to extreme living conditions.
The Ukrainian colony that was left behind was re-settled in 1938 by French Canadians and re-named Lac Castignier after the lake next to it. Ukrainians moved to Rouyn, Noranda, Val d’Or and other nearby towns, developing new Ukrainian communities. (For further details, readers may turn to Yurij Luhovy’s documentary film, in English or French, “Ukrainians in Quebec 1891-1945.”)
A Ukrainian cemetery still remains at Lac Castagnier, with markers indicting names of early Ukrainian immigrants such as Kurello, Lesyk, Sup, Mokrij and others that first settled Sheptytsky. The cemetery, a testament to early Ukrainian settlers, is maintained by descendants of the early pioneers living in the area.
The Ukrainian flag was raised by La Morandière Mayor Guy Lemire. Both Mr. Kurello and James Slobodian noted that it makes them very proud that in 2016, the year we mark the 125th anniversary of Ukrainians in Canada, the memory of Ukrainian early settlement remains as a permanent legacy of this area. They added that this history should be taught in schools so that Ukrainian contributions to the early history of Quebec are never forgotten but passed on to the next generation across Canada.
La Morandière is 50 kilometers from the Spirit Lake Center, the largest museum in Canada that tells the story of the unjust internment.